IBM buys big data firm Vivisimo

IBM said Wednesday that it is buying Vivisimo, a privately held company based in Pittsburgh that helps organizations find and analyze large amounts of data.

The company didn't disclose the terms of the deal. But it said the acquisition will accelerate its "big data analytics initiatives."

IBM estimates that 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created every day. It said the research group IDC estimates the market for big data technology and services will grow 40 percent annually to reach $16.9 billion by 2015.

Vivisimo has more than a decade of experience in the field and more than 140 customers including Airbus, the U.S. Air Force, Procter & Gamble and others.

After the acquisition, about 120 Vivisimo employees will join IBM's software group and IBM will incorporate Vivisimo technology into its big data platform.